...explosions of color! Listening with my eyes closed I can see shapes melting together in hues of mixed texture. Throw on your headphones and (seriously) let the music play. Thanks, Charlie! And, aLL others for their help where it was * Nick, 4/22/2023

The sound of Bill The Drummer in 1974 was over the top. And the drums sound especially fantastic, to my ears, imo, on this particular recording.

5 stars alone for PITB. Incredible jazzy meltdown!

The 3rd night of the complete Wall of Sound, with the band still learning to live-mix the system (the 5/17 soundcheck at Pacific Coliseum). Hastings Park has a horse track, a skatepark, an amusement park, a farmer's market, an outdoor theater and 4 venue buildings. The Dead played the Coliseum, the Agrodome, and the Auditorium (but Jer never bounced the sound of Rosebud off the skatepark coping). The Auditorium was one of the first places they played outside of the Bay Area; and they built up a fan base here, so it's too bad they didn't go back after the '75 hiatus. A decent show, even if the previous night is better-regarded.

First Set. The SBD wasn't attended-to yet for Promised Land, so obviously use the AUD (matrix still needed!). A few secs are missing from the first verse on the official release. Deal goes straight to X-factor (listen to a pitch-corrected version). The rest is average '74 (if not the tightest) through Beat it on Down the Line-6 and Row. However, Big River stands out as a peak, along with a Playin' that's one of the most interesting of the tour. It goes out there, which seems like nowhere at first, until a dark feedback section that also has whiffs of Caution. It's quite the snap when the ether evaporates and yr plopped back in. Must hear once; also has some major Donnaskreech™. The official has a cut of 26secs @17mins.

Second Set. The top of the set's great. U.S. Blues has one of Jer's best-ever solos; it's all attack. Me & My Uncle (bottle/jaw) is still aggro. Money Money is the first of only three (when it was still called Finance Blues). It's the live version on Mars, but not the best (see 5/19). On Mars it has some sort of compression filter, making the box version slightly better. Jer, Keith & Bobby are good; Donna not so much (off key and too high in the mix). Supposedly it was dropped because only Bobby thought it was funny - which sounds like a bit of retconning. A superb China Cat has a Feelin' Groovy (@6:40; but check Bobby starting @6:00!), and dig the 2nd solo in Know You Rider: how does Jer do the steel guitar sound? Crazy. Greatest Story is great with the Jer wah - not so much the jarring Donnaskreech™. Sugaree is not an exciting version and Truckin' is Bobby-flubbed and has mic dropouts (that came with the fickle and unreliable Wall of Sound). But the end jam is fine. Nobody's Fault But Mine has a nice tempo. Not all '74s have lyrics. The set center is the Eyes. Even if Bobby and Donna are on different verses, Jer is incredible through several peaks. Phil thunder-chords the seg-in to an otherwise rote China Doll (on the official the first 1 :07 is from 7/31/74), and they stay out for Sugar Mag, rather than encore.

1st Set:  C+
2nd Set: B
Overall = 3½ stars

Highlights:
Promised Land - straight out t'gate
Big River - Jer doing what he do
U.S. Blues - actually, one of his best-ever USB solos
Me & My Uncle - the energy from USB
China Cat Sunflower>I Know You Rider - so good, and gets you feelin' groovy
Eyes of the World - even with minor quibbles the peaks are crazy

SOURCES: The miller_89972 is the most complete between songs, sounds best, and is pitch-corrected (except for Deal, which needs +1% pitch). The gustin_202 sounds almost the same but plays too slow in a few places. Money Money is a bonus on From the Mars Hotel. Most of the show was released in the Pacific Northwest box, except for edited versions of Playing, Promised Land & China Doll. Believe It If You Need It has Sugaree & Eyes. There's a fun, ahead-of-it's-day, handmade AUD (use for Promised Land; repitch at +1%).

DMTrue13 - Vancouver was a popular stop early on. They played 8-10 times. 5 were at Hastings Park.
July 29 & 30, 1966 - Trips Festival - Garden Auditorium (Hastings); bonus disc on 1st album
August 3, 1966 - Promo free show, Alexandra Park, quickly shut down
August 5, 1966 - The Afterthought (Pender St. Auditorium)
July 13, 1967 - Daily Flash Love-In - Agrodome (Hastings)
July 14 & 15, 1967 - Dante's (Retinal Circus/Embassy Ballroom); there's no evidence they played either or both dates, but there was a '67 promo appearance in some public space on one of these 7/67 days
June 22, 1973 - Coliseum (Hastings); Pac NW box
May 17, 1974 - Coliseum (Hastings); Pac NW box
There were two cancelled festival performances:
*Soul Explosion at the PNE/Hastings Coliseum, in 11/68
*Vancouver Pop Festival in Brackendale, in 8/69
Canada total = 32-34 shows

This just might be my favorite show of the '70s now. I bought the commercial release for this and its Pacific NW companions, and Lordy, am I ever glad I did! Herewith are my favorite versions of Row Jimmy,
Big River, Ship of Fools, Must've Been the Roses, Sugaree, (2nd Set!!) and China Cat> Rider. And I've heard a ton of versions of all of these. The China-Rider here is what I recommend you play for anyone brand-new to the Dead and enthusiastic, or someone skeptical and unfamiliar. If they don't "get it" after hearing that, then they just don't have a very musical mind to start with.
This Sugaree beats any I've ever heard from '77 or any other year. But I'm partial to the early-mid '70s to begin with, so that's just my personal take on it. Regardless, crank it up!

This Playing in the Band is unbelievable. One of the very best of the year, or ever. Absolutely decimates the fabled (read: overrated) version from 5/21/74.

Set One
The Dead's sound in 74 is just right.
I really like the Ramble on Rose / Jack Straw
Dire Wolf sounds somewhat out of place.
but even tunes that I do not normally gravitate towards like Mexicali and Big River are well played and sound great.
The mellow Jerry tunes in set one THE ROSES and ROW JIMMY are just so slow and trippy
And 23 minutes of P.I.T.B
Set Two
U.S. Blues/ Me & My Uncle/ Ship of Fools/ Money,Money/ On paper this might get by you but I found this to be some pretty stinging social commentary.
I have no clue how Me & My Uncle fits in with the three other songs but taken as a whole I would say these tunes speak volumes about the post Vietnam War world the country was heading into.
Very good China>Rider firmly in the 2nd set.
Greatest Story/Now I like Donna and I will tell you why- when she gives out some howls during GSET that is just what I would do or something in a deeper voice for a dude. But really she is feeling the music and to me that is what counts.
I can't tell you how many mini-jam sessions outside of shows that just blew me away.
Sugaree/Perhaps the ultimate I can't stop you but I tried my best song.
Truckin (They regroup from a blown intro and rock this pretty good)>Nobodies Fault =A very traditional tune and at the end of the day I have come to find that the Bible has shed more light on the human condition than even the Grateful Dead did for me. Thank You JESUS! Thanks Jerry.
>Eyes=Oh these EYES from 73 and 74 are just so hot. The jam at the end of this EYES is intense!
And then > China Doll /Sugar Magnolia (I will take that to close a show anyday, anytime)
"She can make happy, any man alive!!!"

This is amazing , great performance. How many times did they play Vancouver? I did some research,didnt get an answers but got some amusing stories/history. It seems like whoever is running the soundboard is using the first song as a sound check.Thats lame for us listening to the recording, but cool to just hear the bass and drums for a bit, they are holding it together.Nice Ramble on Rose,Eyes-everything! I like sound boards, but it is nice to hear a little bit of the crowd sometimes, like the shrieking freak at the start of Ramble on Rose.

An excellent show! 74 SBDs can be a little sharp-toned at the high end, but that was the sound system they had.

Wall of sound picture, taken at the PNE Coliseum on May 17 1974.
http://www.audioheritage.org/images/jbl/photos/pro-speakers/grateful.jpg

We just reviewed this one at the new transitive axis site. http://www.ta.speedingarrow.net/index.php

A very nice spring 74'show.jerry is rockin and the band follows suit.gr8 song selections and excellent jamming.

. . . this is the best China->Rider ever. It has it all. Of course, it helps to have the CM remaster, though the earlier boards in circulation going back to '89 (for me) were no slouches either. Do yourself a favor and savor this flavor.

Great show. Great Eyes. Great china rider. just great

I just have to put a plug in for Row Jimmy. Definitely one of the best versions out there. Keith is playing Rhodes and Phil is playing really far out bass lines. So tranquil and beautiful. #1 Dead tune that makes me cry (right up there with Comes a Time and Warf Rat).

one of the best transitions you will find. It is not long but very hot. Lots of other highlights hey it's 74 the turn on a dime dead as Phil puts it in his book.

Exellent show. Perfect sound from Mr. Miller. Here's a tip. Most of the boards from this era start off with a terrible mix for the first song or so. Don't let that stop you. They just keep getting better until the point where you're at the seventh or eighth track thinking wow this is amazing.

Mr. Miller, I have never met you, but I have yet to find a soundboard from you that isn't the best available. Not just sound, but in some cases substantial reconstruction. Thank you.

Good show from the May 1974 Northwestern swing.

The name Charlie Miller guarantees a quality recording. Performance is a little slow to start, but by the time they hit "Big River" the band is firing on all cylinders. Although Bob pulls a Jerry at the beginning of Truckin', the musicianship more than makes up for any lyrical gaffes. Give this one a listen, you won't be disapointed

This is a *MUST HAVE* show! Check out the Eyes and the Jack straw- Jerry isn't noodling, he's playing his EYES out!!! Amazing how CLEAN this board is- you'd be a FOOL to pass it up!!!!

Peace all.

(used to be a four star show; after B.G. and C.M. got through with it, it's now DEFINITELY a FIVE STAR SHOW!! HANDS DOWN!!!!!!!!!!)

Love ya!!!!

Peace,
-=Greenfox/aka/Jerryinapouch

(kind heads want a copy? mightythefox@!REMOVEFORSPAM!hotmail.com)


P.S. :
just, obviously, if you're gonna email me, just remove the part that says "!REMOVEFORSPAM!" and the rest is my email. :) Peace all!